The Shift in the Center
by forensicsfan
Summary: Set during Hole in the Heart. B/B of course. "His lips twitched up into a sad smile and he tried to catch her eyes with his to see if he could discern some clue in the way she carried herself if he was a man doomed to heartache or if he could stop second guessing what had happened between them last night."


**Disclaimer:** I don't own them, I didn't create them, and I don't profit from them. I do, however, like to take them out from time to time to play with them. Thanks to HH and SN for creating them.

**Author's Note:** This idea has been floating around in my mind for some time, however, it took a long time until it came together in a manner that I was pleased with and I hadn't had the time or inclination to write, a broken elbow will do that to you.

I couldn't let go of what I thought might be going through Booth's mind between when he and Brennan parted after their night together and when he saw her again during Mr. Nigel-Murray's send off. It is set during "Hole in the Heart" and I hope you enjoy it.

* * *

Broadsky wasn't dead, but he was caught and that was good enough for Booth. With Jacob behind bars, he knew he wasn't going to have to look over his shoulder for the sick fuck, and most of all, he wasn't going to have to worry about Bones, at least for her safety, there were plenty of other reasons for him to worry about her.

His brow furrowed as he signed off on his report and he leaned back in his chair, raked his fingers through his hair and let out a long breath. All of this chaos stirred up by Broadsky, and that had left Vincent Nigel-Murray dead had somehow removed any last remnant of pretense between he and Bones and he only hoped that now that the case had wrapped up that she wouldn't try and shove it all back into place. Too much had happened between them for him to just go back to the way things were.

He pushed the paperwork into a neat stack and set it off to the side. There wasn't much more he could do on his end of things tonight. He could submit the report in the morning when Hacker would actually be in to read it and Broadsky wasn't going anywhere outside his cell anytime soon. He clicked his laptop closed, pushed his chair away from his desk, and gave his office a backward glance as he pulled his trench off the coat rack near the door and shrugged the coat on as he left.

He had somewhere more important to be just then. The squintern's body was being sent out from the Jeffersonian and he felt compelled to pay his respects. He owed the young man that at least, taking a bullet that was meant for him, his life snuffed out uselessly. And if he was being completely honest with himself, he wanted to see Bones and know for sure whether this irrevocable shift between them was going to be good or bad.

It didn't take him long to weave his SUV through the late evening traffic to the Jeffersonian. Bones wasn't there when he arrived, but she'd told him that she was coming to see Mr. Nigel-Murray's body off and he knew she would be. But in the meantime he stood there, hands shoved into his pockets watching the squints and Sweets banter back and forth as they waited outside the service entrance with the hearse.

He could tell that the squints were dealing with all of this in their own way, and he gently reminded Cam that if Bones said she'd be there that she'd be there and in the next moments she was. He felt a wave of relief wash over him and then a ball of nerves unfurled as he caught a glance of her carrying in a large potted plant. His lips twitched up into a sad smile and he tried to catch her eyes with his to see if he could discern some clue in the way she carried herself if he was a man doomed to heartache or if he could stop second guessing what had happened between them last night.

A bad rendition of Lime in Da Coconuts and the body of the British squintern slipping away in the back of a hearse and he found himself standing next to Bones finally. Not unusual, but he found it comforting that she stood next to him instead of remaining on the opposite side of their gathering. One by one the squints and Sweets filtered back into the building, but Bones lingered, just for a brief second before her arm threaded through his and she leaned into him just slightly as they followed everyone else back inside and he felt his breath hitch just a little at the moment.

There was no talk of taking in a drink at the Founding Fathers or getting a slice of pie at the Royal Diner, but somehow as everyone said their goodnights and parted ways to make up for the lack of sleep that none of them had gotten the night before, Booth found himself alone with Bones again, just standing there as if they knew what was next.

The silence wasn't tense, more electric as she caught his glance and then slipped her arm through his again and whispered words that made his heart too happy for the somber moment that they'd been sharing just before. "Come home with me tonight."

And there it was; a simple pronouncement that confirmed that everything between them had been irrevocably altered and that it was good, better than good really.

_**The End**_


End file.
